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ichigo-daifuku · 4 years

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Lost Boy

❅ The young lord of the Matsudaira Clan has a habit of getting lost.

Good thing there is one person who is always happy to find him. ❅

A glimpse into Tokugawa Ieyasu's relationship with one of his most loyal retainers, Sakai Tadatsugu.

Word Count: ~2k | AO3 Link

In Okazaki Castle, the stronghold of the Matsudaira, there lived a young lord who was born to the Lord and Lady of the Clan a few winters ago. Most of the time, he was surrounded by people—his family, retainers, maids, and even other children—but today, he was on his own. He roamed the corridors in search of something precious; the most wonderful thing he has ever encountered. He dared not speak, alert in his quietness. His strides were short but quick, and his footsteps barely made a sound against the wooden floorboards. Although he was still getting used to walking, he was doing well enough for someone his age. The place he wanted to find was somewhere he’d been only once, but the one he was looking for was something he had seen many times already. Now, where was it again? Perhaps, behind this door?

He slid the shoji door open and went in. Books; it was a room full of books. The rainbow of colors that decorated the shelves caught his attention, and he thought they were pretty, but they weren’t the precious thing he was looking for. He exited the room at once and went straight to the room next to it. The door was identical, but it took a few seconds for him to succeed in sliding it open. Right then, he was able to catch the calming scent of tea brewed this morning in the air. It smelled good. The room was quite spacious; a folding screen rested near the wall, but aside from that, the only thing inside was a cabinet that contained fine china. None of them was the most wonderful thing he has ever encountered, and thus, he continued his quest.

He padded to the room beside it and attempted to slide the door open. It didn’t budge at all. With all his strength, he tried harder until there was a crack he could peek through. Boxes and fabric with markings of the same one on his clothing; those weren’t what he was looking for either. He let out a sigh, on the verge of giving up. It would be better to go back to his chambers at that point. The maid left after breakfast thinking he was taking a nap, but he had only been pretending to sleep. By now, someone must have already found out he was gone. He traced his steps back to his room. Strangely, after a few minutes went by, he was still wandering around the corridors, and they were starting to look the same to him. He came across a room with an open door, and it was the one full of books. He had been here before!

The chatter of retainers came from the corner as they emerged from the Main Hall. He fell on the floor in fear of being discovered, but it was not the time to cry, so he crawled towards a nearby pillar as quickly as he could and hid behind it. His short stature made it easy for him to do so completely. He placed his hands against the wood to support his wobbly legs as he stood. The voices, accompanied by their footsteps and the rustles of the fabric of their kimono, grew louder as several retainers passed by the pillar. He held his breath until the voices slowly disappeared, and finally, there was silence. He moved his head to the side and peeked; the coast was clear. That was a relief. He would get in trouble if someone caught him.

"So, this is where you've been, Lord Takechiyo," a voice greeted, startling him from behind.

Takechiyo fell on the floor again in surprise, but the man was quick to hold him up and steady him, turning him around gently. It was him, one of his father’s retainers, the one he recognized best out of all of them. His name was Tadatsugu.

Tadatsugu crouched down to Takechiyo’s eye level, a fond look on his face. “Lost again?”

Takechiyo shook his head in fierce denial.

“It’s a good day outside. Would you like to go and see the flowers?”

“...”

“The falcons, then? You seemed to enjoy watching them last time.”

“...”

“Hmm… How about the little horses? Would you like me to take you to them?”

“...”

“I see. Well, is the young lord looking for something today?”

Lost in thought, Takechiyo’s cheeks puffed out in a sullen pout, and a few seconds later, he shook his head again.

Tadatsugu chuckled. The young lord has always been full of curiosity. He has a habit of leaving his chambers and getting lost around the castle too big for someone his age. Tadatsugu was always happy to be able to find him, and he wondered what Takechiyo was looking for today.

“Will you tell me, Lord Takechiyo? I promise not to tell anyone.” Tadatsugu cradled the shell of his ear with his hand and leaned closer.

Though there was a flash of reluctance in his eyes, Takechiyo took a step forward and whispered slowly, “Dai-hoo-koo...”

"Aha! So the young lord is looking for daifuku?" Tadatsugu leaned back and asked, putting his hands together with a single clap.

“Shh!” Takechiyo placed his index finger in front of his lips and nodded.

“Perhaps, strawberry... daifuku?” Tadatsugu, who has learned his lesson, whispered back.

Takechiyo’s eyes lit up at the mention of that specific dessert, and he nodded with more enthusiasm. That was it. The most wonderful thing he has ever encountered, the one he was looking for!

“No need to worry... I, Sakai Tadatsugu, will take you to the place where the strawberry daifuku is kept, young lord! Let us go.” Tadatsugu proceeded to take Takechiyo in his arms so he could carry him to the kitchens.

It caused Takechiyo displeasure. He protested and squirmed wildly in Tadatsugu's arms, all the while crying.

“Shh… There, there…” Tadatsugu, used to his whims, tried his best to pat Takechiyo’s back and rock him back and forth in his arms in an attempt to offer him comfort.

However, those attempts proved to be futile as Takechiyo’s cries became full-on bawling. In a single gesture that would change Tadatsugu’s life, Takechiyo stretched out his hands, grabbed Tadatsugu's hair in his small fist, and pulled with all his might.

“Ah...! Oh, no! My hair!” Tadatsugu cried out as he tried his best to disentangle Takechiyo’s fist from his head. As soon as he was able to do so, his mouth fell agape at the sight of a few strands of his hair clutched between Takechiyo’s fingers. “No! My hair…! My valiant hair…!”

Takechiyo giggled innocently and clapped his little hands, Tadatsugu’s reaction amusing to him, making the strands of hair in his hands drift towards nowhere.

“Oh, the young lord is laughing! What a beautiful day it is, indeed!” The peal of Takechiyo’s laughter made Tadatsugu forget the dull ache in his head. It was as if what happened a few seconds ago never occurred at all. At that moment, it was the furthest from Tadatsugu’s concerns, and he simply wanted to take Takechiyo to the place he longed to go to. It was so wonderful for him to see the young lord so happy. He wiped the toddler’s tears with his sleeve and smiled.

Takechiyo placed his hand on Tadatsugu’s hair in a gentle grasp, holding but not pulling… or at least, not yet. Though his eyelashes were still wet with tears, he had calmed down and was beaming.

“Come now, let’s go get you your favorite strawberry daifuku,” Tadatsugu said, like a father indulging his beloved son.

Tokugawa Ieyasu, the Lord of Mikawa, strode through the corridors of Hamamatsu Castle in search of someone. His every step was quick, every turn of corner confident; in his home, there was no way he would ever get lost. Who would even get lost in a place like this, anyway? Only fools would manage to do something that stupid. He had left Toramatsu in one of the spare rooms to deal with his correspondence, Tadakatsu to feed—and perhaps, get repeatedly bitten by—his falcon, and Yasumasa to polish their weaponry. Everything should be in order as of the moment. In a rush, he merely nodded in response to the greetings of his retainers as he passed by, the bottom of his haori flowing backward at his speed. A few minutes later, he arrived at the place he was searching for. It was early evening, and the room had a lantern lit inside of it, the sound of joyful humming audible from where he stood.

Ieyasu slid the door open easily and barged in with a greeting, "Oi, Baldy."

“What a pleasant surprise! Good evening, Lord Ieyasu. Perfect timing.” Tadatsugu, who was in the middle of pouring green tea in a cup, lifted his head and gave him a crinkled smile. He proceeded to take another cup from his tea set and poured some for Ieyasu. “Here you go, Milord. It’s still warm, just as you like it.”

Ieyasu sat down in front of him, his posture informal and relaxed, and yawned.

“How was your day?”

“Hm, so-so…”

Tadatsugu knew there was a reason for Ieyasu’s visit, and he waited for whatever he had to say.

Hidden by his sleeve all this time, Ieyasu placed the small jar he held on the table.

“For me?”

“Who else.”

Tadatsugu picked it up and looked at it from various angles. The glass was quite warm, and the contents were dark green, a poultice of some sort. He removed its cover, catching the strong aroma of fresh herbs mixed recently. "What might this be, Milord?"

"For your shiny bald head,” Ieyasu replied casually as he picked up one of the sweets and took a bite. It wasn’t until he began eating that he realized how hungry he had grown, how tired he was feeling. It had been a long day; he had forgotten the time while he was set upon doing his task. At least, he was able to finish it. He wondered if the kitchen wench had something good for dinner tonight...

Tadatsugu gasped, his eyes shining with unshed tears. “Oh, my… Thank you so much, Lord Ieyasu. Did you make this yourself?”

Although he asked, Tadatsugu already had a hunch Ieyasu did. If it were one of their castle’s apothecaries who concocted it, then it should have been one of the maids or a retainer who handed the jar to him. He wondered if this was what Ieyasu was so busy with for the whole afternoon, and realized that, most likely, it was. It was even Ieyasu who delivered it, and that could only mean one answer.

“What’s with that reaction? Of course, I had some extra materials. It would be a waste not to use them...” Already finished with another bite of a pastry, Ieyasu picked up the cup and took a sip. It was warm, indeed. The brew took him back to memories of the past; there was that one when he was a child, that moment when he felt freedom for the first time in a very long while, and that recent time when he felt frustrated. It was funny how in the scent and taste of this tea, there were a lot of things he remembered. Before he knew it, he had emptied his cup. He set it down and said, “It may or may not work, you know? But if it does, then there would be more hair for me to pluck from your head one by one.”

Instead of the usual shock and panic, Tadatsugu merely laughed, still over the moon as he saw through his lord’s gesture. His tea was still untouched, and he picked it up to take a sip. “Thank you again. I shall use it well.”

“You better,” Ieyasu said, like a son caring for his dearest father in the most unusual of ways.

Our beloved MC will finally make an appearance in tomorrow's story.

5 days until Ieyasu's birthday! ♡◝(⑅•ᴗ•⑅)◜♡

Golden Days | Ieyasu's Birthday Countdown — Masterlist

Ichigo Daifuku's Full Masterlist

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